


A Rescue Ranch

by Burgie



Category: Star Stable Online
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-04
Updated: 2018-10-04
Packaged: 2019-07-24 21:51:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16183892
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: A new man arrives to Jorvik with an idea for a rescue ranch, just when Louisa needs it the most.





	A Rescue Ranch

In a rare break from work, Louisa had decided to visit South Hoof, wanting to check in on her favourite little imaginative girl. She was in the yard near the broken-down old ranch, playing ranchers (with her playing the part of the horse that needed to be broken while the two Nightdusts grazed near the edge of the area), when they heard the sound of an engine, followed by a car door closing.

"Madison, get off," said Louisa, looking towards the sound. It came from near the house, where there was a red trailer parked.

"Okay," said Madison, seeming to understand that the game was over. Louisa stood up, brushing the dirt from the ground off the knees of her leggings. She didn't know who it was, but she didn't want to look like an idiot in front of someone who might potentially be important.

"Hey there," said a dark-skinned man as he walked into the old ranch yard. "I didn't think anyone was at this old place anymore. At the ranch part, I mean."

"We play here," said Madison, looking from him to Louisa. "Who are you?"

"I'm Hugh," said the man, holding out a calloused hand. Louisa took it, shaking it politely. Madison, however, was looking at something else.

"Woah, are you a cyborg?!" Madison squealed, staring at Hugh's metal leg.

"Madison," Louisa chided, blushing. But Hugh only chuckled.

"That would be cool, but no," said Hugh. "The only bonus is that I don't have to worry about stubbing my toe anymore."

"At least you see the good side," said Louisa, unsure of what to say or how to act.

"You know, I could've sworn my sister lived here," said Hugh, looking around. "But I haven't seen her."

"Who is she?" asked Louisa.

"Holly Hightower," said Hugh. "At least, she's a Hightower now."

"That's my mum!" said Madison excitedly. "I'll go and get her!" As she ran off, Louisa was left alone with Hugh. She immediately felt awkward, unsure what to say. And it wasn't about his leg, it was his... maleness. And him being a stranger.

"So, that was my niece, huh?" said Hugh, smiling fondly in the direction of the house that Madison had disappeared in the direction of.

"Yeah," said Louisa, nodding. "She's a real sweetie pie."

"I certainly got that impression," said Hugh. "And hyperactive. My sister'll have her work cut out with that one, that's for sure."

"Well, let's just say that my life's gotten a lot more interesting since I've known her," said Louisa.

"Heh," Hugh chuckled. "So, are you a girl scout? Just because of your uniform."

"Oh, no," said Louisa, looking down at her tunic. "I'm a member of the Keepers of Aideen." She didn't want to introduce herself as a member of the Followers, that seemed too much like a cult. And she wanted to make a good first impression. Not that she felt ashamed of her friends, just-

"The group of druids dedicated to keeping the island safe from harm?" asked Hugh, distracting her.

"Yeah," said Louisa, nodding. "You've heard of them?"

"Here and there," said Hugh, nodding. "It's a noble cause. Maybe not like serving in the army, but some would say that it is like that."

"Hugh!" another voice called, derailing their conversation once more. Hugh turned and grinned as Holly jogged towards him. "You finally made it!"

"Well, after you mentioned that ranch, I couldn't not," said Hugh. "Someone has to restore this place to its former glory. I want to turn it into a rescue ranch, where horses and humans alike can come to heal."

"Well, we did just get a fresh shipment of horses who need looking after," said Erik, rubbing the back of his neck.

“And there are plenty of people on this island alone who could use it,” said Louisa, thinking not only of her fiancee and the other Soul Riders but also her friends, both new and old.

"Perfect," said Hugh, clapping his hands together after giving his sister a hug. "Then let's get started."

"Where do we start?" asked Louisa, already eager to get working. She wanted to see this place thrive as much as the next person. And the idea of rescuing and rehabilitating injured horses... it called to her.

As Louisa set to work doing the tasks that Hugh gave her, her thoughts wandered, as they were wont to do. She hadn't been having the best day, really. A sleepless night had been followed by hours of work, which had left her feeling drained. And then, the instant she'd reconnected with reality again, someone had said something that had prickled at her. And he didn't mean it like that, she knew he didn't, it was just her mind telling her that people didn't like her when really, they did like her.

Fortunately, though, focusing on the work got it done faster and had the added bonus of making her mind shut up for a while. On her way around the yard clearing away brambles and branches and debris, however, a little wet nose touched her leg and made her jump.

"Woah, hey there," said another male voice. Louisa internally groaned. More boys. Just what she didn't need.

"Hi," said Louisa. She gasped when she looked down, seeing four shaggy little figures. "Pups!"

"Heh heh, yeah," said the new guy. "I'd heard that terriers are popular here, so I thought I'd try my hand at selling something. Y'know, to help support my dad's ranch."

"Oh, is Hugh your dad?" asked Louisa, looking up from where she'd bent down to give love to the terriers, scratching ears and bellies.

"Yeah," said the new guy, nodding. "My mum... didn't make it, but dad looked after me really well."

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Louisa, guilt immediately swamping her. Here she was, moping over words that she'd taken the wrong way, when people had real problems.

"Hey, it's okay, my dad's a good guy," said the puppy guy. "Want a puppy?"

"Give me all of them," said Louisa, holding out her heavy coin pouch. She walked around doing the rest of the jobs with the four terriers following her, listening as Hugh chatted with his family. It was sweet, that he got to reunite with his family. Homesickness, that ever-present pain, tugged at her heart, bringing unexpected tears to her eyes. She wiped them away. So today would be an unstable day, it seemed. Great. Maybe she should just go back to bed.

Louisa was seriously considering doing just that when a horse suddenly came racing into the yard.

"Woah, hey, what's wrong?" said Hugh. The horse, a mare, skidded to a stop, neighing and rearing up.

"I don't see any danger," said Louisa, looking around. Hugh frowned.

"Me neither," said Hugh. "But something must be going on. Maybe you should get on Nightdust and follow her."

"Which Nightdust?" asked Louisa with a laugh. Hugh chuckled too.

"Your one," said Hugh. "Though, I'm sure my niece's horse wouldn't mind a rescue mission. The way she was talking, this mare might've even been a part of his herd once."

"Maybe," said Louisa. "But my Nightdust was part of that herd too." She walked over to her Nightdust, stroking a hand over his black mane before mounting him and racing off after the panicking mare.

As they galloped along the peninsula, the sky began to darken and rain began to fall, getting heavier.

But at last, Nightdust skidded to a stop, Louisa dismounting to look at the poor bundle curled up on the ground. Hugh arrived in the car soon after, getting out to kneel on the other side of the sodden, unmoving foal.

"Is he alright?" asked Louisa, even though she could feel the foal's life force thanks to Aideen's gift. it was weak, but it was there. Her magic could heal it, she knew, but... she'd overheard Hugh saying that healing horses had helped heal him. So she decided to leave this one in his capable hands.

"We should get him back to the ranch," said Hugh. "And out of this rain, definitely. Calm the mother while I pick him up?"

"Okay," said Louisa, slowly approaching the mare. She could feel the mare's fear, her sheer terror that something was wrong with her foal and now this strange human was taking him away. Louisa murmured soothingly to the mare, using just the tiniest pinch of her magic as she petted the mare's nose. She'd done the same thing with Nightdust, Madison's Nightdust, in a warehouse long ago. And, just like then, it worked now. Though, maybe it helped that the mare wasn't being affected by a toxic serum.

Back at the rescue ranch, Louisa cared for the foal. And, if for no other reason than the foal factor, she was transported back several years, to when she'd been caring for a baby Westrider. He'd been so small and cute and full of life. This foal was definitely sick, though. Even without her powers, she knew that it'd be pretty touch and go. If it came down to it, she vowed, she'd give the foal a miraculous recovery.

"Well, we've done all we can for him," said Hugh, rising from where he'd been crouching beside the foal. "Hopefully he survives the night."

"I think he will," said Louisa. "He's a fighter." His life force had certainly gotten stronger since they'd gotten him out of the rain.

"You're welcome to stay the night if you want," said Hugh. "Since we've fixed up the stables, there's plenty of room for all of your horses."

"Sure about that?" asked Louisa with a laugh. "I have over 200."

"Wow," said Hugh, blinking at her. Louisa laughed again, brushing her hand over her hair.

"Yeah," said Louisa. "Though, at least they'll have plenty of room to roam here. And I’m sure some of them will make great therapy horses."

"That is true," said Hugh. "So, what do you say? Stay here on the ranch with me?"

"Sure," said Louisa, nodding.

"Great," said Hugh with a grin. "I'm looking forward to working with you, Louisa."

"m=Me too," said Louisa, nodding. "I'll just make the call to get all of my horses transferred over."

As she walked across the yard, though, Holly approached Louisa with a knowing grin.

"Good to see that my brother's getting back into the swing of things," said Holly. "He seemed so upset before, after he lost his leg."

"Yeah, this ranch will be good for him," said Louisa, nodding. "And good for a lot of other people, too."

"Oh, I wasn't just talking about the ranch," said Holly, nudging her with a smile.

"What?" Louisa frowned, and Holly winked. And then it dawned on her.

"Oh no, no, he's just being friendly," said Louisa.

"You do make him happy," said Holly.

"Holly, I'm engaged," said Louisa. "And gay. Nothing's going to happen."

"Sure," said Holly with a laugh. "You might change your mind." And there it was again, the sting of taking things the wrong way. Louisa walked back over to Hugh, feeling uncomfortable now.

"Louisa, hey," said Hugh. "Did you get your horses sorted?"

"Yeah," said Louisa, nodding. "There's just one thing." She took a deep breath, her emotions threatening to spill over. "Your sister seems to think that you like me, but I'm telling you now that I'm gay and engaged to my wonderful fiancee." She looked down once it was out, unsure how he would take it.

"My sister's always been trying to hook me up," said Hugh with a roll of his eyes. "Ever since she found love, she's convinced that everyone needs to find someone to love."

"Love is wonderful, don't get me wrong," said Louisa. "But..." She pursed her lips, not wanting to say more, not wanting to unload her issues onto him.

"You look stressed," said Hugh. "Come inside and take a load off. Holly let me have the ranch house while I'm here."

"That was nice of her," said Louisa. "And I think I'll take you up on that offer."

Inside the dusty ranch house, Hugh made tea while Louisa sat at the table, trying to forget the words. Maybe she'd been living in her little bubble of happiness for so long that she'd forgotten that people might disagree with her happiness.

"I don't want to sound like a typical brother, but she didn't mean it," said Hugh as he sat down with two large mugs of tea. Louisa stirred sugar and milk into hers, taking a sip.

"I'm sure she didn't," said Louisa. "I guess I'm just feeling sensitive today for some reason. Which is stupid, I know."

"Your feelings are valid, no matter why you're feeling that way," said Hugh. He looked almost like a bush adventurer, leaning back with the mug of tea in his hand. Louisa immediately looked down into her tea, trying to shut out the homesickness. But it just kept coming. If her father had lived at home instead of moving here, if she could be at home right now, but she'd miss her friends, but she missed her family back home, but she could always visit, but Jorvik needed her.

"Sorry," said Louisa, wiping her eyes. "Homesickness is stupid."

"It's really not," said Hugh. "When I was away in the war, I just wanted to be at home with my family." Louisa breathed in shakily, trying not to sob. He had no idea just how close he'd come to the truth.

"She said I might change my mind," said Louisa quietly.

"Oh," said Hugh. "I can see how that could be taken the wrong way. You don't say that to gay people. Everyone knows that."

"Exactly," said Louisa. "I guess I'm just having a bad day, huh?"

"We all have bad days," said Hugh. "The important thing is not letting them win."

"Yeah," said Louisa, giving him a shaky smile. She finished her tea, swallowing down the upset.

"Are you sure you're okay to go back outside?" asked Hugh as Louisa stood.

"I'm fine," said Louisa. "I only almost had a breakdown that time. And that's progress. Thanks for the tea."

"You don't have to stay here if you don't want to," said Hugh.

"Oh, I want to," said Louisa. "And don't worry, I wasn't getting homesick for Mistfall. It was for my first home. Australia." She swallowed past the lump in her throat. "The red rocks here remind me of it sometimes. That's all. And the wild horses like the wild brumbies and... I grew up on a horse ranch."

"Maybe you should apply for some shore leave," said Hugh. "Take your fiancee home and get married there. If the laws permit it."

"That's a great idea," said Louisa, her heart lifting slightly on battered, broken wings. “I'll look into it."

"And I'll talk to my sister," said Hugh. "I'm sure she just got carried away."

"Thanks," said Louisa. "For everything."

"While I might not have any romantic intentions, much to my sister's dismay, I think we could be good friends," said Hugh. "Especially if you like horses."

"I love them," said Louisa. "Well, cats are my favourite, and chickens, but horses are near the top of the list for sure."

"Well, rest up tonight, Louisa," said Hugh. "On the rescue ranch, the work never stops."

"Because there's always someone who needs rescuing," said Louisa, knowing from experience. It was a common theme in Jorvik, after all. Maybe Lisa should come here, heal a little with some horses in a peaceful, safe environment. She'd ask her about it. And the wedding.


End file.
